Thinking of finally using Ebay...

I buy stuff all the time, no probs.
Never sold anything though.

 

How much money is the thing you are buying?

I've seen people with 2000+ ratings go down the tubes. You can only do so much to verify someone.

 

I'm sure it is a "real" problem, but as there are always people that will try to take advantage in almost any scenario.

Take time to read the feedback posted about the seller by other eBay users. Also, sellers with lots of positive feedback are usually safe bets. I've had one bad experience out of 100-200 transactions and that was years ago.

 

My wife and I have literally bought and sold hundreds of things on Ebay and never ONCE been cheated by anyone. A couple times, high bidders didn't pay when the auction was over, but that was the worst it ever got.

We've bought and sold things, at highest, well over a couple grand and it has always been great. Too bad you didn't start sooner. It is harder to find deals on there now then it was 3 years ago because of all the software geared to help you find and win auctions. But, it is still great and we still buy and sell on there.

 

ebay is great.

Get a paypal account and it'll be so much quicker.
At first I was hesitant to get on the paypal thing, but I've never had a problem and use it all the time now.

Happy Ebaying!

 

I haven't used EBAY yet. I used its sister site Half.com and got burned. Some bum charged me for the product but never sent it and never communicated with me. BUT after reporting it and complaing etc. Half.com gave me back my money.

I used to use Ubid.com a lot. I have not used it since last summer, the last thing I bought from them was my pc.

 

I only buy stuffs from sellers who have more than 100 positive feedbacks. Never been cheated by a seller, but did have the experiance of super slow shipping, took 1 month for me to get my order.

As for selling, about 1 out of 5 buyers don't pay for their auctions, all you can do is fill a non-paying buyer alert, but they can always open up a new acount. Plus there are alots of scam going on on ebay, watch out for those e-mail from Africa and South Asia, don't ever ship out the item until you acutally get the payments.

 

If you really really want what your bidding on try using a bid-bot. I don't have the link right now but it's an easy google.

 

I have bought hundreds of things on ebay. I only got burned once, when I purchased a Rockets Team Photo. It was suppose to be an original photograph and it was easily a copy of a photograph. I've sold a few things, probably about a dozen items, I always got my money.

Feedback is key. Please read the sellers feedback and make sure the shipping prices are not ridiculously exorbitant. I placed a bid on a trackball mouse once. Didn't even notice the $18 shipping charge, got lucky when I got outbidded. Never bid drunk.

 

What was it? An air guitar?

 

Slow shipping is not limited to ebay. I ship things into the US all the time, and it usually takes an average of 3 weeks to get there (via insured expedited post.... longer if by regular mail). Packages get held up by US customs all the time.

I have completed 26 transactions (5 as buyer, 21 as seller). Only one person refused to pay after winning the auction. He had zero feedback.

 

I've done about 65 or so transactions on Ebay, both buying and selling, and I've had 2 negative experiences. (I bid on something the seller didn't send) One was less than $10, and the other was $40, but to be fair, neither of the sellers had feedback over 10, so I knew I was taking a chance.

I don't shop anywhere else for computer related equipment, and I've used it for other things as well. I bet I've saved over $1000 using Ebay.

 

Always use paypal. You have additional protection up to
$ 500.00. If you have to pay with check or money order - red flag.
Avoid.

Do not bid outside of ebay. Trash any emails that ask you to buy outside. Those are dishonest scammers.

Sometimes, shipping insurance is a good buy. If the seller won't offer it - maybe they're trying to sell you something broken.

Try to buy from sellers with lots and lots of transactions and high favorable feedback.

 

Sellers that accept only money orders/checks aren't really a red flag. Paypal fees are VERY high and some sellers can't afford to take it. I can't take Paypal because of the fees. Plus I had some trouble getting Paypal to actually give me the money...they held several hundred dollars hostage for more than a month!

I've been using eBay since 1997, as a buyer and a seller. I'd say about 30% of the winning bidders don't pay, or they decide they want to make up the terms...like tell me they're going to pay in installments or in pesos instead of dollars (seriously, that happened once). If you sell something, be sure to clearly outline everything -- where you'll ship to, how you'll ship, payment methods, etc. I only ship to the United States...it seems some people don't understand what is and isn't in the U.S. I've had to list the states, even go so far as to put something in like "if George W. Bush is not the president of your country, do not bid." It seems a lot of bidders are either down right stupid or they just don't bother to read. As far as buying, I haven't had any problems -- until just recently. I've had to send back two high-dollar items because they weren't as advertised. I'm still waiting for about $275 in refunds, which I seriouslt doubt I'll ever see. I purchased both items from stores, but I still have my doubts.

 

I used half.com once and had the same problem. On EBay the only problem I've had is a large percentage of the software/dvd/music stuff is counterfeit.

 

I tricked my friend into bidding on a phone, he won, but it was just information to get that phone cheap... he wasnt happy at paying 60 dollars for info to get a 300 dollar phone for 200 dollars.